‘Silent warrior Ajinkya could’ve played 100 Tests’

Former Mumbai Ranji Trophy head coaches Pravin Amre and Chandrakant Pandit described Test veteran Ajinkya Rahane as a silent warrior and highly committed professional, as the stylish batter announced his retirement from all forms of the game on Thursday.

Rahane scored 14,209 runs in 205 first-class games after making his debut for Mumbai against Karachi Urban in Pakistan in 2007, where he scored 143 at the National Stadium in Karachi, under head coach Amre.

“Ajinkya was always a silent warrior. I have just one regret as a coach. He could’ve finished as a legend, with 100 Tests. But it’s not his fault. He tried his best. Had he received support from the system, it would have been a great achievement,” Amre, who played 11 Tests and 37 ODIs, told mid-day on Thursday. fish-roadgame.online

Ex-Kolkata Knight Riders head coach Pandit hailed Rahane’s discipline. “Ajinkya still has some cricket in him. He did well for Mumbai and KKR too. He’s one of the most dedicated, committed and well-disciplined cricketers with a great work ethic. Playing 85 Tests is no joke, yet his attitude and body language has been unwavering. He has always been very down to earth and I’ve always respected him for that,” Pandit told mid-day over the phone from Indore.

Amre also highlighted Rahane’s success in tough overseas conditions: “He has scored loads of runs in SENA countries [South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia]. Having performed for so long in those difficult conditions, he deserved a fitting farewell on the field.”

Ajinkya Naik, MCA chief
‘Ajinkya Rahane’s retirement marks the end of a remarkable chapter in Indian cricket. His dedication, composure under pressure, and commitment to excellence have made him one of Mumbai cricket’s finest ambassadors. His legacy will inspire generations to come.’

Batting genius Brian Lara found an apt time to drive home a message about the need for West Indies cricket to revive at the funeral of Sir Garfield Sobers at the Kensington Oval here on Wednesday.

Lara told a grieving audience that this was the time to start the Garry Sobers Initiative and by the time they gather here to mark his birth centenary in 10 years’ time, West Indies cricket would have hopefully be on top.

Meanwhile, Clive Lloyd, who first played Test cricket under Sobers, said: “Sir Garfield Sobers was not merely the outstanding cricketer of his generation. He brought to the beautiful game a rare combination of brilliance, imagination, courage and joy.” Sobers’s coffin was draped in the Barbados flag.

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Port of Spain [Trinidad and Tobago], July 31 (ANI): Batter Shan Masood will miss the second Test against West Indies due to a finger injury, delivering a massive blow to Pakistan’s chances to level the series.

Masood suffered the injury during the first Test against the Caribbean side in Trinidad when he was struck on the finger by a Jayden Seales delivery in Pakistan’s first innings as the West Indies went on to record a 90-run victory. In the first Test, Shan scored 109 and 3.

The second match of the series commences at Queen’s Park Oval on Sunday, and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) also confirmed the left-hander is also in some doubt for the start of the upcoming Test series with England from August 19.

“Pakistan Test batter Shan Masood has been ruled out of the second Test against the West Indies after sustaining an injury to the index finger of his left hand during the first Test at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad," PCB said via a statement as quoted by ICC.

“Following a scan and clinical assessment, Shan is currently undergoing treatment from the Pakistan team medical panel."

“His availability for the first Test against England starting 19 August at Leeds will depend on his recovery and clinical progress. In the meanwhile, he will remain with the team," the statement concluded.

It was Pakistan’s batting that let them down in the opening Test against the West Indies, and selectors have a trio of options waiting in the wings to replace Masood for the second fixture or if they believe any further changes are required.

In 47 Tests, Shan has scored 2,765 runs at an average of 31.06, with seven centuries and 14 fifties in 90 innings, with a best score of 156.

Experienced duo Abdullah Shafique and Saud Shakeel were added to the squad when Abdullah Fazal was ruled out of the series with a back injury before the first Test and will come into consideration, while uncapped right-hander Awais Zafar is in contention to earn a debut.

Pakistan currently sit in ninth place on the World Test Championship standings, one spot below the West Indies.

Series schedule

First Test: West Indies won by 90 runs.

Second Test: August 2-6, Port of Spain. (ANI)

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Zurich [Switzerland], July 31 (ANI): FIFA has presented a clarification over plans to to sell stakes in its competitions to private investors by saying it plans to continue the consultation process.

The body, which overses world football, in its clarification on establishing the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) on Friday said that it would “never entertain" the idea of selling football to private parties, and the initiative wants to ensure meaningful ownership of commercial opportunity in the sport to all member nations with the “spirit or the governance of FIFA or football itself" not being the cost of it.

FIFA had on Tuesday announced that it was seeking to launch FIFA Forward Enterprise to bring together the sale of FIFA’s commercial rights, right from broadcasting, sponsorship, ticketing and licensing, with the operational delivery of its tournaments. Under this proposal, FIFA would raise up to 4.2 billion USD (3.1 billion pounds) via external investors through the sale of minority, non-controlling stakes in FFE, which FIFA says will be valued at around 20 billion USD (15 billion pounds).

This move generated a lot of concern and anger from the football fraternity, particularly UEFA, who felt that the sport, particularly its showpiece event, the FIFA World Cup, was being put for sale. UEFA, the governing body of European football, on Thursday also said its member associations have unanimously voted to boycott the FIFA World Cup and all other FIFA competitions in protest against FIFA’s plan to sell stakes in a subsidiary that will manage the global governing body’s tournaments.

Also, CONCACAF, the governing body for football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, said its members had raised “deep concerns" over the proposal, citing a lack of due process, an unusually short consultation period, and the absence of review or approval by FIFA’s relevant governance bodies.

Now, responding to all the criticism from the football world, the official X handle of FIFA Media posted a clarification, saying, “We have heard the feedback provided by the respective confederations in relation to the proposed establishment of FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) and would like to address the issues that have surfaced since the initial media reporting on Tuesday."

FIFA, headed by president Gianni Infantino, said that it respects the feedback and concern aired in the public and reaffirmed its “commitment to an open and democratic consultation."

The world’s football governing body said that their planned consultation process was “disrupted by incorrect media reports" and will proceed with it, giving a chance to each member federation to vote on the plan based on facts. FIFA also said that the “spirit or the governance of FIFA and football" would not be compromised.

https://t.co/6ChPeKUlQR

— FIFA Media (@fifamedia) July 31, 2026

“Our planned consultation process was disrupted by incorrect media reports. We will proceed with this consultation process to ensure that each MA has the ability to express its vote based on facts.

FFE has been proposed solely to ensure that all FIFA Member Associations (MAs) have the opportunity to take meaningful ownership of the commercial opportunity of football in their respective countries, and that this does not come at the cost of either the spirit or the governance of FIFA or football itself. Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain," said FIFA.

“Everyone has the right to express their opposition and to seek further clarification but no single entity can claim to represent all 211 MAs around the world. Each MA should be allowed to review the proposal and have a say in shaping their own future. These are the democratic principles of FIFA," the statement continued.

FIFA said that under their proposal, the newly-formed body will be owned and controlled by them, the commercial value will be shared among all members and the funding to each member association would be increased.

As per the proposal:

-FFE would move FIFA’s commercial and operational event delivery activities into a subsidiary organisation that FIFA would own and control permanently.

-The commercial value created would be shared among all 211 MAs, enabling each MA to make meaningful investments in football in their respective countries.

-Under the proposal, each MA would receive USD 20 million of FIFA Forward Development funding over the next four years (2027-2030), irrespective of its individual support. This increased funding would come from the additional revenues generated by FFE through the more effective management of FIFA’s commercial operations, for the benefit of all MAs.

It also pointed out that the ‘FIFA Fast Forward Programme’, a one-off development funding of an additional 20 million USD per member nation, would be fully voluntary for all members if the FFE proposal proceeds and “would be financed by external investment without ceding control or altering FIFA’s governance structure in any way."

“Without the support of the majority of MAs, FIFA’s commercial activities would remain unchanged. FFE would not be established," it added.

On a concluding note, FIFA said, “These components represent the starting point of the consultation process and are open for discussion as part of that process. This can include approval, rejection or amendment in their entirety or individually."

“These principles underpin the FFE proposal: unprecedented development funding, truly global ownership of the commercial opportunities of our sport, and full self-determination through a democratic process for all MAs," it signed off. (ANI)

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